Big food brands hide harmful effects: CSE –ToI-31.3.12

‘Claims Of Zero Trans Fats Untrue’

New Delhi: Delhi-based NGO Centre for Science and Environment has alleged that leading food manufacturers are guilty of “large scale misbranding and misinformation” by claiming 
that their food contains zero trans fats even though tests show heavy doses of it. 
    Most popular “junk foods contain very high levels of trans fats, salts and sugar – which inevitably lead to severe ill health and diseases like obesity and diabetes,” CSE said on Friday. It released the results of tests carried out on 16 majorfood brands that the young particularly like, such as Maggi and Top Ramen noodles, McDonald’s foods, KFC’s fried chicken and Haldiram’s Aloo Bhujia. These findings were disputed by the manufacturers. 
FOOD FOR WORRY 
CSE report says 
Maggi Noodles | Single pack contains 3.5g of salt; daily recommended intake is 6g. Negligible fibres; 70% just carbohydrates 
Top Ramen Super Noodles (Masala) | 0.7g trans fats/100g though company claims zero trans fats 
PepsiCo’s Lays (Snack Smart) | 3.7g trans fats/ 100g. Earlier sold as zero trans fats chips but claim knocked off later 
KFC’s Chicken Zinger | 16.9% fats; McAloo | 8.3% fats. 35% calories in veg burger come from fats; 47% in non-veg 
WHO says an adult male can have 2.6g of trans fats a day, female 2.1g and a child 2.3gCOMPANIES RESPOND 
    As per our analysis for many years, trans fats level is well within international recommendation —Nestle 
We go to a lot of effort to ensure our food is safe for customers and have stringent quality checks — McDonald’s Many ‘trans fats free’ products contain trans fat 
New Delhi: Trans fats clog arteries when they get deposited on arterial walls making the passage narrower, while large amounts of salt lead to higher blood pressure making the heart work overtime. CSE noted that the kind of food under test has enough trans fats, salt and sugar to lead to an early onset of diseases in the young. It accused the companies of not disclosing their products’ real contents. 
    CSE’s lab tested samples of popular foods and snackslike aloo bhujia, noodles, soft drinks, burgers, French fries and fried chicken. The results showed that having just one serving of these foods “completely overturned one’s daily diet chart.” 
    The National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) and the World Health Organization (WHO) prescribe benchmarks of how much salt, sugar, carbohydrates and fats every individual can have on a daily basis to stay healthy. 
    Citing an example, CSE said, “The NIN benchmark for maximum salt for one person is 6 gram, while the WHO puts it at 5 gram. The normal 80-gram packet of Maggi noodles that many of us gobble up almost on a daily basis has over 3.5 gram of salt – enough to take care of over 60 per cent of our daily salt intake.” 
    But much more than salt, the real concern was the threat from the trans fats which were disclosed by the companies, CSE noted. The WHO says that in a balanced diet, a maximum of 1% of total energy should come from trans fats. Therefore, an adult male can have 2.6 gram of trans fats per day, while an adult female can have 2.1 gram and a child (10-12 years) can have 2.3 gram. 
    But CSE found that Top Ramen Super Noodles (Masala) which claims to have no trans fats actually contains 0.7 gram of it per 100 gram. Similarly, Haldiram’s Aloo Bhujia says it has no trans fats, but the study found 2.5 gram per 100 gram. Pepsi-Co’s Lays (Snack Smart) was sold till February 2012 through huge advertisements to say that these chips are healthy because they have zero trans fats, but every 100 grams of it has 3.7 grams of trans fats. 
    The companies strongly refuted the allegations in the CSE report. Pepsico said, “All products manufactured by PepsiCo in India are fully compliant with all the regulations, including those on labelling, prescribed by the FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India).” It said that its products under the Lays, Uncle Chips, Kurkure and Cheetos brands are trans fat free. 
    CSE’s contention is otherwise. Its report says, “A child eating one McDonald’s Happy Meal finishes up 90% of all his daily requirement of trans fats. The packet of Happy Meal makes absolutely no mention of this massive dosage of trans fats.”